News

Tuesday's NHL Pre-season Capsules

News

Tuesday's NHL Pre-season Capsules

WINNIPEG - Mark Scheifele had two goals and two assists, and the Winnipeg Jets won their first NHL pre-season game at home, posting a 6-1 victory against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday night.

Paul Postma also had a goal and three assists in the split-squad game before a jubilant crowd of 15,004 at MTS Centre. Columbus won the matchup in Ohio 5-1.

Jets captain Andrew Ladd, Kevin Clark and Ivan Telegin also scored.

Ryan Johansen had Columbus' goal.

The Jets left Winnipeg after the 1995-96 season to become the Phoenix Coyotes, leaving fans to adopt the American Hockey League Manitoba Moose that fall.

When the announcement came last May that Moose owner True North Sports and Entertainment had purchased the Atlanta Thrashers and was moving them to the Manitoba capital, it sent the city into a frenzy of anticipation.

Even the game's first fight 37 seconds into the first period got the fans roaring as Winnipeg's Dustin Byfuglien went at it with Cody Bass.

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP)—Evander Kane scored for Winnipeg, but Maksim Mayorov had a goal and an assist to help Columbus get the win in the split-squad pre-season opener for both clubs.

Kane flicked home a backhand at 6:21 of the second period for Winnipeg's first goal since 1996, the year the NHL left town for Phoenix.

Nick Holden scored in the first period, and Boone Jenner, Mayorov, Antoine Vermette and Samuel Pahlsson added second-period goals for the Blue Jackets.

BALTIMORE (AP)—Chris Mueller had a goal and an assist to power Nashville to the victory in the first hockey game in Baltimore since 1997.

Niclas Bergfors had a pair of assists for the Predators (2-1), who were playing their third game in two days after facing Florida in a doubleheader.

It was the first of seven pre-season games for Washington (0-1). The Capitals used several of their stars, including Alex Ovechkin, Alexander Semin and goaltender Michal Neuvirth, who went the distance.

Pekka Rinne started in goal for Nashville before being replaced by Jeremy Smith around the halfway point of the second period.

TORONTO (AP)—Sergei Bobrovsky made 27 saves to lead Philadelphia Flyers to the exhibition victory.

The Flyers scored three times in the second period, with forwards Zac Rinaldo, Wayne Simmonds and Mike Testwuide beating Leafs goalie James Reimer in an 11-minute span.

Sean Couturier scored in the third period, and Flyers defenceman Matt Carle had a pair of assists.

The pre-season matchup featured two pairs of brothers going to head to head, with established NHLers Luke Schenn and Phil Kessel suiting up for Toronto against Philadelphia prospects Brayden Schenn and Blake Kessel.

VANCOUVER (AP)—Jordan Schroeder scored the tying goal early in the third period and had an assist on first-round draft pick Nicklas Jensen's go-ahead score for Vancouver.

Marco Sturm had a goal and an assist in his Canucks debut after signing as a free agent, and defenceman Chris Tanev scored on a short-handed 2-on-1.

Niklas Hagman scored twice, and Mikael Backlund had the other goal for Calgary. Leland Irving made 18 saves while playing the entire split-squad game.

CALGARY (AP)—Alex Tanguay and Tom Kostopoulos each had a goal and an assist, helping Calgary cruise to the split-squad win.

Greg Nemisz, Rene Bourque and Lee Stempniak also scored for Calgary, which used a much more veteran-laden lineup than Vancouver.

Mark Mancari scored for the Canucks, whose lineup was comprised mainly of rookies and other training camp hopefuls.

Miikka Kiprusoff made nine saves to record the win and even picked up an assist on Bourque's goal.

Manny Legace got the start for Vancouver, allowing three goals on 22 shots.

EDMONTON (AP)—Jared Spurgeon scored a pair of goals, including the power-play winner with 1:46 remaining in the third period, and the Wild started the pre-season with a victory.

Spurgeon's goal came with Taylor Hall in the penalty box for inadvertently high-sticking Justin Falk while swinging at a loose puck.

Jarod Palmer and Pierre-Marc Bouchard also scored for the Wild.

Anton Lander, Magnus Paajarvi and Antti Tyrvainen scored for the Oilers, who played a split-squad game, with the other team playing at the same time against Chicago in Saskatoon.

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP)—Patrick O'Sullivan had two goals and a pair of assists to lift Phoenix to the victory over Anaheim in both teams' pre-season opener.

Andy Miele also scored and had two assists for the Coyotes. Brett Hextall and Maxim Goncharov each had a goal and an assist.

Andrew Cogliano and Kyle Palmieri each had a goal and an assist for the Ducks, who pulled within 5-4 on Nate Guenin's power-play tally midway through the third.

Krys Barch put Dallas up 4-0 when he beat Carey Price 4:04 into the second. Mike Ribeiro scored the Stars' second power-play goal on Nathan Lawson at 16:24, ending a run of three straight Montreal scores. Matt Fraser scored late in the third.

Dallas' Tyler Beskorowany stopped the six shots he faced after replacing Andrew Raycroft 10:14 into the second.

Erik Cole got his first Canadiens goal, Andrei Kostitsyn scored with the man-advantage and former Dallas defenceman Jeff Woywitka beat Raycroft before both teams changed goalies midway through the second.

ST. LOUIS (AP)—Evgeny Grachev scored two goals and St. Louis topped Tampa Bay in the pre-season opener for both teams.

Matt D'Agostini also scored for St. Louis, and Brian Elliott made 21 saves in his Blues debut after signing as a free agent on July 1. Jamie Langenbrunner and David Backes each had two assists.

Steve Downie had a power-play goal for the Lightning, and Mathieu Garon and Jaroslav Janus split the game in goal for Tampa Bay.

D'Agostini snapped a shot past Janus with 3:07 remaining in the second, giving the Blues a 2-1 lead.

News

The Golden Knights have hit another hurdle with their name, this time with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. A trademark request has been rejected, but it doesn’t sound like the team expects a name change.

The Vegas Golden Knights are really having a tough time catching a break in the naming department.

On Wednesday, a trademark request by the Golden Knights was rejected by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in large part because the name and logo were deemed too similar to that of the NCAA’s College of St. Rose Golden Knights.

Yes, that’s right, yet another roadblock between the NHL’s newest franchise and the name Golden Knights.

The first hurdle for the team, and the first real hubbub about the name, came shortly after the naming ceremony in late November. The team had only had the Golden Knights moniker in place for a week when it was reported by The Fayetteville Observer’s Steve DeVane that the U.S. Army was set to review Vegas’ use of the name because it is shared by the Army’s highly decorated parachute team.

And all that came after Vegas owner Bill Foley purposely strayed from his first choice for the team name, Black Knights, in order to avoid any conflict with the U.S. Army’s NCAA athletics programs and after the singular name, Knights, was reportedly avoided in order to forego any conflict with the OHL’s London Knights.

Suffice to say, the naming process has been a headache thus far. However, before those who despise the name and/or logo go celebrating in the streets, it should be noted that the latest naming hurdle likely means nothing in the long run.

“Office actions like this are not at all unusual, and we will proceed with the help of outside counsel in preparing a response to this one,” the statement reads.

In their statement, Vegas also pointed to the shared names of UCLA and Boston, both named the Bruins, Miami and Carolina, both named the Hurricanes, and even pointed out that Vegas and Clarkson share the Golden Knights name. None of this is to mention the MLB’s Texas Rangers and the NHL’s New York Rangers share a name.

“We believe, at the end of the day, all parties will embrace the fact that we are the Vegas Golden Knights and this absolutely will work out,” Craven told Gotz. “I hope people don’t overreact to this at all. We believe everyone will be satisfied. We are only going to enhance the name Golden Knights for everyone. That’s our goal.”

UPDATE: NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly has released the following statement:

“We are currently reviewing the Trademark Office's letter and will prepare a detailed response demonstrating why we continue strongly to believe the Vegas Golden Knights mark should be registered in co-existence with the college registration, just as a number of other nicknames currently co-exist in professional and college sports (particularly where there is no overlap as to the sport for which the nickname is being used). That response is not due until June 7, 2017.

“We consider this a routine matter and it is not our intention to reconsider the name or logo of this franchise. We fully intend to proceed as originally planned, relying on our common law trademark rights as well as our state trademark registrations while we work through the process of addressing the question raised in the federal applications.”

John Tavares scores with a move no one had ever done before

News

John Tavares scores with a move no one had ever done before

The New York Islanders captain undressed Jay Bouwmeester in the most unusual of ways, but the important thing is he kept the puck. Then he buried it

John Tavares: good at hockey.

The New York Islanders captain pulled off an absolutely stunning series of moves last night, culminating in a laser-shot goal against St. Louis Blues goalie Jake Allen. But let's get back to his humbling of Olympic gold medallist Jay Bouwmeester, because that's where the real magic happened.

Witness, as Tavares puts his stick behind his back and grabs it with his other hand while still skating and fending off Bouwmeester. Then, since he is a patient boy, Tavares waits and waits and waits before firing one top corner on Allen:

As the soccer folks would say, lovely. New York would go on to beat the Blues 3-2, with Anders Lee scoring the other two goals for the Isles. After struggling to begin the season, New York is now 6-2-2 in its past 10 games. Tavares leads the squad with 21 points through 26 contests.

News

Connor McDavid didn’t mince his words when asked post-game about Brandon Manning. He called the Flyers defenseman “classless” and said Manning admitted to injuring him on purpose.

Connor McDavid has had no shortage of head-to-head battles with young stars in the game. There has been outings against Jack Eichel, Auston Matthews and more than handful per year against the Flames duo of Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan.

But of all the players Connor McDavid could have had an on-ice feud with, it seems Brandon Manning is the first real rival for the Oilers phenom.

One might recall that it was during the early part of the 2015-16 campaign that Manning, a Philadelphia Flyers blueliner, got tangled up with McDavid as he looked to break in on goal, resulting in McDavid making hard contact with the boards behind the net. The impact with the boards saw McDavid break his collarbone and led to a 37-game absence for the then-rookie.

It was believed to be an unintentional act, something that simply happened as part of the game, and McDavid had even absolved Manning of any blame. That was until last night, more than 13 months after the Nov. 3, 2015 injury to McDavid..

During the Oilers’ hard-fought 6-5 defeat at the hands of the Flyers, McDavid was seen verbally jousting with Manning on a couple of occasions. The most obvious case came after a power play goal by McDavid, where he was seen skating towards Manning and shouting something in his direction.

It didn’t end there, though. Post-game, the Oilers captain went in on Manning, calling the hit that led to the broken collarbone an intentional act.

"I did all I could defending him last year in the media," McDavid said. "Everyone wanted to make a big deal saying he did it on purpose, and he wanted to say some comments today about what went on last year. I thought it was one of the [most] classless things I've ever seen on the ice. He said some things and our guys responded accordingly. I guess we can put the whole 'if he did it on purpose' thing to rest because what he said out there kind of confirmed that. Shows what kind of guy he is when he doesn’t step up and fight some of our guys.”

Shortly after McDavid commented on the incident, Manning fired back saying that he would “never intentionally hurt someone,” and added that’s not the way he plays.

"Anybody who knows me, I play a hard game,” Manning said, according to NHL.com’s Adam Kimelman. “That's the reason I'm here, that's the way I'm in the NHL. I'm not here to score goals like some of those guys. I think I play an honest game, and anyone who knows me knows I play hard and stuff happens out there."

News

Philip Larsen got knocked unconscious, the Canucks retailiated without knowing what happened, and they could have hurt their teammate even worse in the process.

The incident was horrific. We can all agree on that.

Tuesday night in New Jersey, Vancouver Canucks blueliner Philip Larsen skated behind his net to retrieve a puck. He had no idea Devils left winger Taylor Hall was pursuing the same puck. They collided heavily. Larsen bashed his head on the ice and was knocked out cold.

It was a scary scene, undoubtedly, one that understandably evoked a ton of emotion from Larsen's teammates. It was hardly a surprise to see a flurry of Vancouver players swarm Hall and make him fight.

It was a shame, however, for multiple reasons. First off, the hit wasn't dirty. It wasn't even a deliberate bodycheck. Hall leaned back on his skates to slow his momentum and held out his arms as if protecting himself from imminent impact. It was more of a crash than a bonecrushing hit. We can debate whether Larsen's head was the principal point of contact – I don't believe it was at all – but it's irrelevant when assessing Hall's guilt. There was no intent there. He won't be disciplined by the NHL for an accident.

And yet, thanks to the sport's culture of immediate and forceful vengeance, Hall had to fight anyway. In the spur of the moment, in the heat of elite competition, players are simply too jacked up to take a breath and assess the situation. They see a comrade fall and, in mere milliseconds, seek and destroy whoever caused the harm.

“You always have a problem with a hit when one of your guys gets hit hard," Canucks coach Willie Desjardins told the Vancouver Province's Jason Botchford after the the game. "It doesn’t matter if it’s a clean hit. You have a problem when a guy gets hit that hard. I think all coaches would.”

The ironic thing about this tough-guy mentality is that it could end up pushing one of the toughest things about hockey out of the game: good, clean hits. If the swarm mentality goes on much longer, the only guys willing to lay opponents out with big hits will be those ready and willing to drop the gloves right afterward. Sooner or later players might decide it's not worth sitting five minutes and/or risking injury just to put a lick on a guy. And, in Hall's case, he wasn't even trying to drill Larsen.

Will we ever stop seeing players attacked after clean hits? I doubt it. The revenge assault is a crime of passion, a snap decision. But maybe, just maybe, the Canucks and players all over the world can learn a bit from what happened right after Larsen got hit. Watch:

The first instinct, sadly, is not to help Larsen, but to destroy Hall. Center Michael Chaput immediately starts a fight. That causes a pileup of players from both teams – all around the unconscious Larsen. It's downright disturbing to see him getting kicked in the head by his own teammates’ skates. Canucks goalie Jacob Markstrom tries to box out Larsen and keep him safe. Markus Granlund tries as well but has to step over and onto Larsen in the process. It’s a miracle Larsen wasn’t cut. None of that would've happened had Chaput thought of Larsen first.

The ugly scene is a reminder that, right after a teammate takes a massive hit, the first priority should be to protect him. The best way to do that isn't to attack his attacker. It's to attend to the teammate first. There's plenty of time to review what happened and take down the perpetrator's number for later in the game. That's what jumbo-tron replays are for. And, in cases like Hall's, the violence would be averted altogether if players watched the replay and realized it was an accident.

Sadly, the idea is a pipe dream, and I don’t expect players to learn from Larsen's fate anytime soon. But we can always hope.